Being President is Bad for One's Health

I watched about half of the presidential debate last night and there's no doubt that at least for the bit I watched Romney clearly out debated Obama. Obama was often hesitant in his replies and his answers were rarely stated with any confidence. This was shocking to me since Obama almost always debates well. But one thing that particularly struck me is how much Obama has seemingly aged after just four years of being in office. It was a reminder to me that being President of the United States is often detrimental to one's health. Aside from of course the possibility of being assassinated the demanding nature of the office clearly exacts an awful toll on both body and soul of the incumbent. The way Obama looked last night, namely, lacking the vigor he clearly possessed during the 2008 campaign prompted me to go back and look at before and after pictures of former US presidents down to Lyndon Johnson. Here's what I discovered:

Obama 2008

2012 (debate night)

Bush 2001

 2008

Clinton 1992

 2000

 1992

H.W. Bush 1988

Reagan 1980

1988

Carter 1976

 1980

Ford 1974

1976

Tricky Dick 1968

1974

 1968

Johnson 1963

Moral of the story: if you desire longevity and good health don't become president.